Palm Beach International Raceway fills the spring air with racing

How about the intricacies of designing, engineering and fabricating a jet engine-powered racecar?

IHRA

Springtime in Florida is primetime for racing, and the Palm Beach International Raceway™ is no exception. On April 4-6, the track is bringing the Super Chevy Show presented by Chevrolet Performance to town for the first stop in the 2014 season of the Super Chevy Show. The show is the premier national event for all Chevrolet enthusiasts with 12 shows across the country featuring high-powered Chevy racing excitement and spectacular Chevy show cars.

"With so many Chevy lovers in South Florida, we're proud to be hosting the premiere event for Chevrolet in the country, tailored to Chevy fans. Chevy has made a huge impact on the automotive scene in the last year, with the launch of the new Corvette Stingray and the enhanced styling for the Camaro - undoubtedly those vehicles have won over even more fans. We're looking forward to welcoming all of those Chevy fans of all ages to this once-a-year show," said Dale Gann, Vice President and General Manager at PBIR.

The series boasts one of the nation's finest performance and restoration midways for General Motors products, as well as a Swap Meet and Car Corral. It also features thrilling races and family-friendly entertainment including:

Tickets are $20 for a 1-day adult admission on either Saturday or Sunday. Children ages 6 to 12 are $5 per day on Saturday or Sunday, while children ages 5 and under enter free. Parking at the facility is free for all racers and spectators.

The weekend kicks off with Test & Tune on the Drag Strip on Friday, April 4 - an open track session for any make and model of car, truck, dragster or motorcycle, during which racers can speed down the track for just $20 for multiple runs. Gates open at 6 pm; racing continues until 11 pm. Spectator tickets are just $10 for adults while children 12 and younger enter free. Parking at the track is also free.

On Saturday, April 5, gates open at 8 am, and the Super Chevy Magazine Triathlon starts at 10 am, followed by bracket racing, the CamaroGuys Gen 5 Challenge presented by S&W Race Cars, Pro Show, and the car and truck show awards ceremony. On Sunday, April 6, gates also open at 8 am with time trials beginning at 9:30 am. Bracket racing, Pro Show, and car and truck show awards round out the day.

On May 2-3, the track welcome the IHRA Nitro Jam, which features a unique, interactive experience within the Larsen Motorsports Nitro Jam pit area. The all-new Jet Racing Technology Center (JTC), presented by Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, will walk fans through what it takes to engineer, design, fabricate and even paint professional racecars. Now you can see actual future Larsen Motorsports Jet Dragsters built in front of your very own eyes.

The Larsen Motorsports Jet Technology Center will join a completely redesigned Fan Fest pit area at all IHRA Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series events in 2014. In addition to the Jet Technology Center, fans can also enjoy the all-new Hollywood Cars of the Stars collection featuring some of the most famous vehicles from film and television. All of this will be packaged in one convenient area where fans can meet the drivers, see the cars and take part in a number of interactive stations.

"This is a complete redesign of the fan experience at IHRA national events. When fans come to a drag race, they want to be entertained both on and off the track. The new Jet Technology Center, along with the Hollywood Cars of the Stars and pit arrangement, will help us achieve that goal by providing a great product on the track, as well as a unique and fun experience in the pits," said Scott Gardner, President of IHRA Motorsports.

In the new JTC, fans will learn the intricacies of the General Electric J-85 engines used in jet racing with actual, full-size live cut-away jet engine demonstration models. See how the air flows through a jet engine. Learn how the flame-throwing afterburners that nearly double the thrust of an engine work. Learn from the engineers at Larsen Motorsports how chassis structures are designed and how the cars are aerodynamically engineered for stability and airflow at nearly 300 miles per hour.

Fans will witness future Larsen Motorsports jet cars being welded by engineers and the precision fabrication required to build a jet dragster. See actual future Larsen Motorsports driver's compartments and the fixtures they are built in that are custom made to travel to each Nitro Jam event, giving fans an opportunity to see real chassis assembled in person.

Finally, see live paint work being done by Matrix Paint System artists and what it takes to keep the award winning Larsen Motorsports paint schemes attached to a jet dragster at nearly 300 miles per hour. Learn the tricks of the trade as some of the most talented airbrush artists in the world show you how to create amazing paint schemes.

Want more? Learn what it takes to drive and crew jet dragsters from the actual Larsen Motorsports team. Watch live on stage interviews as the official host of the Jet Technology Center interviews drivers and crew chiefs at key times scheduled throughout the day. Get the questions you have always wanted to ask answered by the pros themselves.

Be sure to subscribe to the West Palm Beach Motorsports Examiner, and keep track of your favorite racers, no matter how many (or how few) wheels they may or may not race on. If you're a motorsports fan, and know of an event, team, or person you'd like to see profiled, please let me know. Also, be sure to follow me on twitter, and read my articles about local getaways, HOAs, elections, and restaurants.

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Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway nearly 30 years ago. He has had the privelage of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory. He looks forward to sharing some of his enthusiasm for motorsports with the readers of examiner.com. If you have any ideas for events, teams, or competitions he should cover, don't hesitate to email him at adamsinclair@att.net.